A fox, a Board and Some stones
by Lacrusae
Summary: When you give a fox a Go board, he'll want to play. This is a story about Mitsunari bonding with a reserve officer over a game of Go. No apparent pairings for now and taking requests ,ongoing, rated T for small swearing and sexual themes
1. A Haze, a fox, and a monkey

This is my first fanfiction in a long time. In your reviews, please tell me how I can improve my writting. Thank you.

_Italics_ are Mitsunari's thoughts

Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to me.  
However, Enmu does.

* * *

It started off as a miserable morning to say the least. It had rained the night before so the grounds were very muddy. Mist hung around the camp keeping the air wet with the threat of more rain apparent with the dark clouds that loomed overhead. If the sun had risen already, it would hardly be noticed.

It was, supposedly considering that the sun's usual glorious rays were not the ones at fault for waking the majority of the camp, morning and soldiers were already performing their daily routines; patrolling, training and similar activities of the like. Their overseers would command them and it looked to be a peaceful day ahead for the army that set their camp here.

Although it should have been a surprise, it certainly wasn't to most who knew of him, that the commander of the whole camp, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was still sleeping. It was a routine for him to sleep in when there were no battles planned and most of the camp agreed that he deserved the rest. It's common knowledge though, that he sleeps with a hand on his trusted staff should anything happen without his knowledge. He most likely would have kept sleeping all through lunch time if his trusted right hand man, Ishida Mitsunari would not wake him up. It was this duty that Mitsunari was trudging through the mud to accomplish.

"Ah! She strikes again!" "Crap.. Thanks to you, I lost 20yen!" "That's not a lot so quit complaining!" "So who's going to face this demon woman now?" "Demon woman? That's not very nice.."

Mitsunari stopped in mid-trudge hearing the bickering of some of the soldiers. _Demon woman? Gambling? What are these fools up to?_ He thought as he changed course and headed in the direction of a small huddle of soldiers. "You there! What are you fools doing? Shouldn't you be training?"

"Shit! It's Lord Ishida.." "Damnit we're dead.." The soldiers parted from their huddle and stood stiffly saluting him in a line. They held their spears and various other weapons proudly at their sides. "Go tend to your duties." Mitsunari said with the strictness of a superior. His arrogance showed in his face as he watched the soldiers run to their duties.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of many things being dropped. He looked behind him and saw a single soldier crouched on a large plank of wood. He was gathering small, round, white stones that had scattered on a wooden board with a painted grid on it. It appeared that this is what the soldiers were gathered around. "Hurry it up and tend to your duties soldier!" He said annoyed.

"My apologies my lord." The solder said quickly gathering up the scattered stones. _This voice... A woman?_ She stood up with the board under one arm along with two wooden cups that each held a decent amount of small round stones. One cup held white stones while the other cup held black stones. Mitsunari understood what the soldiers were doing.

"What is your name and rank soldier?" He inquired.

"My name..." The girl thought for a bit before answering. "My name is Enmu sir, and I am currently a reserve officer under Lord Hideyoshi's command." She spoke in a certain dreamy way that made Mitsunari think that she just woke up. Unfortunately for her, he too had woken up not too long ago. "Games like this do not have a place on a battlefield. You should be training than having to play such a childish game."

"It is part of my training sir."

"What makes you think that?"

"It is through this game that I have learned strategy and mathematics, despite not being of noble birth sir." Mitsunari was slightly impressed, but not enough to let it show through his arrogance.

"It would be of more use to you if you trained your strength rather than your brain at this point in the war. Considering that you are a woman, you may be left behind in terms of skills than the men who are constantly training. I suggest that you use that board for firewood and go and train with the rest of the soldiers."

"Surely you of all people would know, my lord that strength alone cannot win a war. When this war is over, I would also like to be employed in a decent job that doesn't include fighting, and for that, I need to be educated. As for the strength of an able warrior, I assure you that I have enough of that already." Although she was probably right, Mitsunari wanted to end the conversation as fast as possible so that he could tend to his other duty.

"Go train with the rest of the soldiers. This is an order."

"My apologies my lord, but I will not go against my principles."

"Do you realise that I can punish you for not obeying a direct order?"

"Yes my Lord." This woman was really getting on his nerves. "My lord, may I request that you engage in a match with me?"

"What? Me, play a childish game?"

"Surely, Lord Ishida could handle a game of strategy, which is said to be your forte, against a commoner girl such as I?" She was trying to lure him into a foolish game with a seemingly innocent taunt to get out of punishment.

"Lighten up Mitsunari!" Hideyoshi Toyotomi appeared from behind Mitsunari and patted his back. "What's a little game of Go gonna do to you?" _It seems that Lord Hideyoshi has woken up of his own accord... _

"If you insist my Lord." Mitsunari inwardly sighed settled on the other side of the large plank of wood as Enmu set up the playing board. It wasn't the traditional block of wood that would normally be played on, it was thin for travelling purposes and it appeared to be worn out.

"Which side would you like to be on?" She asked.

"It doesn't matter." Mitsunari replied.

"Have you played Go before my Lord?"

"Yes. You do not have to explain the rules. I'm sure our audience knows them as well." A small huddle had already appeared with Hideyoshi included.

"Shall we have a small wager?" Mitsunari inquired. Enmu agreed. "Right, than if I win, I will punish you for not obeying a command from a superior. If I lose, I will not question your principles." Mitsunari smirked, confident in his ability to win.

"This is going to be easy for Lord Mitsunari!" "Are you sure? She's known as the Go demon who won a hundred matches!" "My money's still on Lord Ishida." "Well, I'm betting on the woman!"

"Hoho.. It seems that this is going to be a pretty epic match up." Said Hideyoshi as the two players began. He had overheard the conversations of the soldiers around him. He turned to the closest soldier and ordered him to send for Masanori Fukushima. Surely, this was a battle he would not want to miss.

* * *

Some minutes later, the Go match was still occurring. Noticing that it appeared to be a dull match, most of the soldiers went about returning to their duties and Masanori had not even arrived to watch stating that it was 'a waste of time'. The only one left watching was Hideyoshi. The two players looked completely concentrated and the air was tense. It was then that Hideyoshi decided to strike up a conversation.

"Soo... Enmu was it?"

"Yes my Lord." She replied.

"You need not speak so formally Enmu. Today seems to be a slow day." Hideyoshi said with a smile.

She paused in mind stone placement to stare at Hideyoshi. Mitsunari looked up annoyed. "Are you going to move or not?" He said impatiently.

"Y-Yes my lord.."

"Didn't Lord Hideyoshi say that there was no need for formalities?"

"Sorry...Lord Mitsunari.. Lord Hideyoshi.." She still spoke with a little formality, but it was a start.

"Glad you got that straight.. Now make your move." He said irritably. She finally placed the stone down and they continued the game. However, Hideyoshi wanted more conversation.

"So, Enmu. You are under my service correct?"

"Yes. It is understandable if you don't remember me. I transferred into Lord Nobunaga's army after Lady Oichi married Lord Nagamasa. My family was in the service of the Azai family since we lived in Omi."

"You lived in Omi?" Hideyoshi asked.

"Born and raised." She said with pride, placing another stone on the board.

"Hey Mitsunari, isn't that where you were born?" Hideyoshi asked with a grin.

"Yes Lord Hideyoshi." He answered, also placing a stone on the board.

"Than it's settled! Enmu, since you seem to be a capable person, I'll leave you in Mitsunari's hands! He'll be your commander from now on!"

It was silent for a few seconds when Hideyoshi noticed why is was silent. The two players hadn't placed any stones down and were staring at the Monkey king.

"Lord Hideyoshi, you wish to place this infuriating woman in my hands?" It was true that Enmu did annoy him and he didn't need that kind of annoyance in this time of war.

"Why not? You two seem to be well placed if put together." He said with a carefree tone.

Enmu held a blank stare as she answered. "Yes, Lord Hideyoshi."

"Oooh! This is such a good child!" Nene appeared from behind Hideyoshi and ruffled Enmu's hair. Mitsunari sighed. _Another infuriating one has appeared.._ "Did I hear you correctly my dear? This girl's going to under Mitsunari?"

Hideyoshi nodded, a bit surprised at the appearance of his wife.

Nene pouted. "Hopefully Mitsunari will play nice than!"

"I do not 'play' lady Nene." Mitsunari said.

"Oh? Than what are you doing right now? Aren't you PLAYING Go?"

Mitsunari was silent. "Lady Nene, if it is alright with you, may we continue?" Enmu inquired. Her hair was quickly fixed into a high ponytail.

"Stop being so formal! You are all my children!" Nene said bubbly. "Call me just 'Nene' or 'Mama' and call everyone else by their name! You're all my children so there's no need to be formal!"

"..Y-Yes.. Nene.."

"What a good child! Now go finish your game! As for you my darling.." Nene grabbed Hideyoshi's arm and surprising began to drag him toward his tent with unusual ease. "We need to talk about Cha-cha.." Nene had an evil look to her eye as she dragged Hideyoshi away, a look of dread plastered on his face. Mitsunari and Enmu sweat dropped.

"Shall we continue Lord Mitsunari?"

"Didn't you hear what Lady Nene said?" Mitsunari said placing down a stone.

"Yes my lord." She placed down a stone as well.

"Than, you know. As per her orders, you call me by name informally. There is no need to mention my rank."

"B-but.."

"Are you going to disobey the Lady?"

"No.. Mitsunari."

"That's better." Mitsunari placed another stone and smirked. "I win." Enmu stared. Although it was by a small point margin, he did indeed win.

"I shouldn't have expected so much. Now time for your punishment. I've been waiting for this."

"First, I request something of you.. Mitsunari." She still found it difficult to say his name informally. She quickly cleared the board and turned it over. On the other side of the board were two columns. One for 'Wins' and one for 'Losses'. The 'Wins' column had an abundant number of names written underneath while the 'Losses' side had around five. What caught Mitsunari's attention was the first name of the 'Losses' side.

"If you don't mind.. Mitsunari. Could you please sign here?" She offered a calligraphy brush already damp with ink to him. "I'm recording how well I'm doing all through the years. The 'losses' column indicates who I have lost to, so please sign there." He quickly signed his name and stood up.

"And now for your punishment, as promised." She stood next to him and saluted knowing fully well the terms of the match.

"Your punishment is to play Go with me every time I ask. Since I am now your commanding officer, this will be often, so expect a challenge ahead of you."

Enmu held a look of surprise.

"I suppose that this game of yours isn't completely useless. I admit that I have exercised my brain so I prefer to keep in well trained. You aren't a completely useless player yourself. You are now excused seeing as it is lunchtime." He coolly walked away leaving Enmu completely surprised.

* * *

It was sometime later that Mitsunari was in his tent. Contemplating something in his head. The first name written at the back of Enmu's Go board was 'Sakichi'. It was a name he hadn't seen or heard in a long time. _It was most likely pure coincidence but.. This might prove to be interesting..._

* * *

--Chapter 1 end --

Chapter 2 Tiny preview: _Head ornaments, a board and some stones_

References:

- 'Enmu' Means haze, mist or fog

- 'Omi' is a province in Japan where Nagamasa and Mitsunari were born (according to samurai warriors)

- 'Chacha' is one of Hideyoshi's consorts.. I think. Correct me If I'm wrong.

- Historically, 'Sakichi' was Mitsunari's childhood name.


	2. The cold, Elvis and Head Ornaments

_Please read the note at the bottom! _

_Italics_ are Mitsunari's thoughts

Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu does.

-----------------------------------------------------

Today, it is during a sunny, yet cool afternoon in the camp when our tale starts. Soldiers were bustling around with their daily duties. To an onlooker, it would have seemed just like a normal day around camp, but the occupants themselves were aware of the tension in the air. A battle with the Akechi army was only a couple days away.

Mitsunari Ishida stepped out of the make-shift war room deep in thought. _The key to this battle is going to be Mt. Tenno and Shoryuji... We need cannons and to block his escape route... _A cold breeze interrupted his thoughts and he pulled his overcoat collar up. He sighed as he soon found himself infront of the make-shift mess hall. The smell of food coming from the hall wafted to his nose.

_This should be a fool-proof plan...There is no cause for worry. I'm sure of it. _He stepped inside and scanned the area, looking for someone. _She should be on her break right now..._

Spotting a couple of soldiers with clearly marked armbands nearby talking, he approached them. "You there, I believe I assigned you two under officer Enmu for the next campaign. What are the current whereabouts of your commanding officer?"

"Enmu..? Sir, We don't know of an officer with that name." The male one spoke. Mitsunari raised an eyebrow. "Is that not Officer Enmu's seal on your armband?"

"No sir. This is the seal of officer Retsu." He responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Mitsunari ignored his tone. _I don't recall ever employing a 'Retsu', and under that infuriating woman's seal... An impostor? _

"Tell me the whereabouts of your commanding officer, now." _I'll have to deal with this nuisance. _

"Yes Lord Ishida!" The soldier straightened up, a little alarmed by Mitsunari's serious tone. "She should be by the training grounds right now, Sir!"

Mitsunari nodded. "You should also take this woman to the infirmary." The woman in question was the male soldier's friend to whom he was talking to before Mitsunari approached them. She was a lady samurai and her face was flustered with eyes that held a dreamy look when he started talking to them.

"Yes my lord.." The soldier replied as Mitsunari walked away. He was too far for him to hear the last part of the male soldier's mumbled sentence. "..although I really don't think that it's necessary."

---

He found the person in question by the training grounds just as the soldier had said. She was huddled under a tree appearing deep in thought and already engaged in a match. Her opponent was the late arriving, Sakon Shima, of the house of Tsutsui. As he drew near, he began to hear parts of their conversation:

"I still say it's used to find water."

"How could he use those to find water? I think he wears them just to intimidate people."

"Your move."

"Okay."

"How could he use them to intimidate people? To me, they just look like golden rabbit ears..."

"I believe that the reason is that people call him, 'The fox of 'Mt. Sawa."

"Doesn't that mean they're supposed to look like fox ears than? I didn't know that my lord was that kind of guy..."

"You're right. Than I suppose that he wears them for another reason."

"Maybe to detect the secrets of enemy strategists?"

"..How would that work?"

"Perhaps that IS preposterous.."

Mitsunari didn't want to know what this idiotic conversation was about (although he could guess, but it did slightly annoy him) so he decided to intervene before anymore odd assumptions could be made.

"Not as preposterous as an officer who doesn't inform her commanding officer of her real name." One could almost see the vein popping out of his head as he stood over them. (They were sitting down).

"Oh?" Sakon looked up at his infamously arrogant peer clearly reading his expression, but most likely, choosing to ignore it evident by the carefree tone of his voice. "What brought this on?"

"When this woman was first transferred under my command, she told me that her name was 'Enmu' and now she is being referred to as 'Retsu'." Mitsunari rubbed his temples at the sight of Retsu/Enmu's bewildered face. Mitsunari was not known to decipher one's facial expressions, but anyone could tell that she had no idea what he was talking about. However, Mitsunari knew that this could be a façade.

"What are you scheming, woman?" He asked her. Sakon merely raised an eyebrow anticipating his opponent's answer.

"My Lord.... Mitsunari. I have no idea what you're talking about." She said as she placed a stone down. Not forgetting about the match, Sakon also placed a stone after a brief moment of thought.

Inwardly, Mitsunari smirked. The girl still couldn't say his first name without difficulty.

"Whoa whoa Mitsunari! Honestly, I don't think Retsu is lying to us so calm down and let us have a good go match. You can watch if you'd like." Sakon gave a confident smile as he watched Retsu lay down another stone and he placed his. _This man is not a fool. I suppose I could go along with this idiotic woman's game than.. For now. _

He gave an inward sigh as he sat down to observe them. Despite Sakon's confident smile, Retsu proved to be a tough opponent leading by a large margin of points. An awkward silence soon followed.

Only to be broken of course by Retsu. "My lord, Sakon and I have been deliberating as to the function of your usual headpiece during battle." She spoke as if she practised the sentence in her mind. _Already on first name terms with the man? _"Yeah...What IS it for?" Asked Sakon, his bluntness apparent.

"Please spare me the stupid-" The look on Retsu's eyes alarmed him when he glanced at her. She paused in mid-move to stare intently at him. She was completely serious. Sakon chuckled. "C'mon Mitsunari. Just answer the question."

"I will not bow to your useless mockery." Mitsunari simply replied. A smile that looked suspiciously malicious graced Retsu's lips as she put down another stone.

"I win in 3 turns." She proclaimed. Sakon quickly looked over the board with a puzzled expression. "I see than. You're probably right." He sighed as he scratched his head. "You're probably the toughest Go player I've ever met but you haven't won yet." He picked up another stone but caught Retsu's eyes. He chuckled understandingly lowering his hand.

"Lord Mitsunari, it seems that I'm in a tough situation here and I would prefer for a cup of tea. Would you care to continue for me?" Without waiting for a response from Mitsunari, Sakon quickly got up. "I'll be back soon with a pot and cups." He waved them off as he headed to the kitchens.

_I may as well do what I came here to do. _Mitsunari positioned himself beside the board opposite of Retsu. He picked up a stone ready to prevent Retsu's victory when she spoke:

"My lord...Mitsunari, before we continue this game, may I propose a wager?" _Oh great. Another wager._ He decided to go along with it. "What are the terms?"

Her smile grew. "If I win, you will tell us the function of your head ornament." Mitsunari was getting annoyed by her curiosity. "If I lose.." She had to think for a moment, which proved unnecessary because Mitsunari finished her sentence for her. "You must secure the canons at during the next campaign, or die trying." Retsu's eyes widened.

"I thought I was to stay as a reserve captain at the main camp for this battle.."

"Anyone can take care of that. I just need more people to stay stationed by the canons when we capture them." With that, although Retsu wanted to say more, he silenced her with a clonk indicating he had just placed a stone.

----

"What did I miss?" Sakon was quick to return to say the least. He sat down comfortably placing the pot, teacups and tiny bunches of tea leaves wrapped in paper beside him unaware of the tension hanging in the air.

"Want some tea you two?" He offered. The only sound that followed was one clunk of one stone after another.

"Errrmm... Well, I have some green tea, oolong tea and others here to try... The head chef just threw a few tea mixes at me saying that he didn't have time to bother with individual orders with a skirmish fast approaching and many hungry soldiers...hehe..." Clonk, clonk.

"Well, I have some boiled water already so I think I'll put in green tea then." He opened the top of the pot, ready to mix in the tea, when Retsu sighed suddenly. He glanced at her seeing a weary look on her face.

"Here Sakon, I've been meaning to try this." From almost nowhere, she took out a string. On it, were small bundles of leaves that were rolled into balls.

"What IS that?" Sakon inquired.

"You'll see." She dropped a leaf ball into each cup and poured in the boiled water. "It will be ready in a few minutes."

A clonk turned their attention away. "This match will also be completed in a few minutes." Mitsunari's signature smirk made its way to his face. Retsu's eyes widened as she surveyed the board. "My lord...Mitsunari. This game is far from over."

When it fact, it was won a few minutes later, just as Mitsunari had said.

"Now, infuriating woman, since you have lost once again, I trust you will keep up your end of the bargain."

"Yes my lord...Mitsunari."

"Wow Retsu.. This is what we were waiting for?" Sakon was peering into his teacup. "I've heard of this.. Don't they only sell make these on the continent?" He took a sip from said cup. "It's sweet!"

"It's jasmine." Retsu nodded taking a sip from her own cup. "My lord ...Mitsunari, please try it. I know a bit of your 'history' with tea so I think you'll enjoy it."

_My history..? Lord Hideyoshi I suppose.... _"The tea has gotten lukewarm already. Do you honestly-" He stopped in mid-sentence to peer into his cup as well. Sitting as the bottom of it, submerged in warm water was a large flower in full bloom. _So this is was those leaf bundles turned into... _He took a wary sip of his cup. _It's sweet... _

"Well, it seems that I have to retire early. See you two soon." Sakon got up, carrying his cup with him. Retsu returned the stones to their proper containers and flipped the board over adding a tick beside Mitsunari`s name. He had won twice over her.

Mitsunari put his emptied cup down and got up from his sitting position. "You should go to brief your squad now about their new assignment." He turned to walk away but stopped when he heard Retsu's voice.

"Milord, even without the wager, I still would have agreed to what you had asked." He turned to look back at her sheepishly grinning face. He turned again, looking ahead of him. "That's good to hear."

-----------------------------------------------------

--Chapter 2 end --

Chapter 3 mini preview: none for now.

A/N: I sincerely apologise to anyone who was waiting for this update... Almost a year? OTZ

I can tell you this: I had finished typing this chapter up many months ago, but after I saved it, I was having internet troubles, and then I seemingly forgot about that I had a working account on . Luckily, a recent comment and email alerts reminded me of my neglected story. I'm sooo glad that I didn't delete this chapter off of my computer, but I had to dig for it.

From now on, I may continue this story from time-to-time, but my writing style, might or might not have changed, so please bear with me.

References:

- 'Retsu' means cold

- Mitsunari's history with Hideyoshi is actually pretty interesting. If you don't know about it from Samurai Warriors: empires, than check up on it on wiki.

- This chapter takes place before the battle against Mitsuhide. When it comes to this storyline, I'll be following the game's storyline mostly

- If you wanna try out the tea that is mentioned in this chapter, try going to a store that sells specialty tea. It's called 'flowering tea' and it's as beautiful as it is delicious. (May be a tad expensive though.)

- Tamaki, Hanako is also my personal character and is a shout-out to a story I made in 6th grade, and she therefore, belongs to me. She won`t play a significant role in the story.

OMAKE:

"So...You weren't able to find out what it was for?"

"Unfortunately...no. "

"Well... At least we can still take guesses!"

"I'd like to call them theories."

"Oh! Sakon! Nice of you to join us."

"A pleasure."

"This is one of the people under my command, Tamaki Hanako."

"It is a great honour to make your aquaintance my lord."

"No problem. So, what are your theories so far?"

"To contact UFO's."

"Retsu, that's-"

"Ceremonial head ornament for dark rituals!"

"I don't think so Tama-chan, my lord doesn't seem to be into those kind of things."

"Oh, but you never know Retsu-sama! Men like to hide certain interests!"

"Interests? Like what?"

"Like, he might be into ----------- and ----------- and don't forget ----------- Some guys I know are like that. Pretty disgusting, right?"

"I-If he's hiding things like that, than me might also be hiding that he's ----------- or ----------- and maybe ----------- ! I heard that it's common among samurai, even during war. Oh dear....."

"Oh Retsu-sama. But think of the possibilities! They're so lovely..."

Sakon had to quickly excuse himself from the campfire's side, partly because of the odd atmosphere that had quickly been generated, and partly for scolding himself that his pursuit of knowledge had led him into witnessing this possibly mentally scarring conversation.

As a result, the topic never arose again.

"Heheh... Sakon has left the convo"

"What was that, Retsu-sama? Why did you turn your voice manly?"

"It was... Nothing."

Somewhere in the camp, a fox nearly spit out his tea, were it not so undignified.


	3. Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask: Act 1

Normally, I'd tell you my excuse for my lack of update but I'll only tell you this: this has been sitting for a while and only now does it occur to me to upload it.

I apologise for the inconvenience.

Here comes a bit of an arc that comes in parts.

Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu does.

* * *

**Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask **(Act: 1)

It was afternoon at the camp and the sun continued to shine as the cicadas' cries grew loud. Many soldiers had just awoken due to the previous night's tiring skirmish. The only ones who were really awake were the medical team and their superiors.

They hadn't slept during the night anyway. Who else would take care of the injured soldiers from the battle with the Akechi clan?

Besides the medical staff at the camp (who were near frantic at the amount of people they had to care for), the mood was a happy one since it was a victory after all. The next couple of days at the camp were expected to be days of paying respects to their fallen comrades (and to the fallen enemies for the more respectful soldiers), rest, cleaning up after the battle and packing their tents. Mostly rest though. Hideyoshi believed that they deserved that much at least.

There was one person stomping through the camp that was more energetic than most. Most likely because he was far too irritated to relax. (Not to mention, too much rest would ruin his strict morning/day pattern) Mitsunari Ishida was once again, looking for his identity confused reserve officer, this time sporting his left arm in a sling and without armour.

His day started off as expected. He awoke earlier than most, was checked upon by a healer, received and processed the reports from his subordinates (minus that reserve officer who was stationed at the cannons), made sure most of his subordinates knew and got to work on what was supposed to be done for today (minus said person), awoke Lord Hidesyoshi, breakfast and other authority-related duties were, for the most part, done.

Now if only he dealt with that go-playing 'demon'. _Honestly, how did she get the position she had?* _

Every time he would ask someone that should know her whereabouts, they pointed in different directions, reminiscent of 'wild goose chases'. For the better part of a couple of hours, he felt foolish for someone being in HIS position running all over the place to find a single woman.

It also didn't help that according to her subordinates, her name changed again. They even acted as though this new name of hers had been her name the entire time. It seemed as though he was the only one to notice these changes. Perhaps some kind of illusionary technique, for which only HE was immune?

This time, he would definitely get to the bottom of this without Sakon's interference. Speaking of Elvi-…errr… Sakon….

He spotted him sitting under the same tree that he and Retsu (now changed to Taiyou*) had their last Go match. As he approached, he noticed the sort of peaceful atmosphere that surrounded the man as he sipped tea while watching the coloured leaves softly fall off the withering tree. It was unusual for a tree's leaves to be falling during this time of year, but he figured that it was just a diseased tree. He was particularly staring at one leaf that despite the slight breeze constantly rustling it, it wouldn't fall.

Not that the Fox of cared.

"Sakon." He said curtly, breaking the man out of his peaceful state. "Have you any idea where that go-playing woman has gone?" Irritation dripped from his words.

"You mean Taiyou?" _Even Sakon Shima has been fooled as well… _"I believe she went into the nearby town. They were having a festival tonight so I think she wanted to watch."

_Finally, someone with a reliable answer. Wasting time like that seemed like the type of thing people like her would do. _

"That infuriating woman…" Mitsunari turned with the intention of going to a messenger to fetch her but a thoughtful "Hmmm" from Sakon made him hesitate. He stopped in anticipation for what the older man might say. "If I recall, wasn't that town under Yakuza* control? That'd be bad if she were spotted and recognized as one of us…"

That confirmed it. She was probably the most idiotic subordinate he ever had. At this rate, even if he did send a messenger, how would the messenger fair if there was a confrontation?

"I wonder if Lord Hideyoshi would notice if I got a new captain…" He murmured. _It would be fine if we left her there, right? _

"Did you say something Mitsunari?" Sakon inquired.

Mitsunari coughed. "Nothing. I suppose I'll leave that asinine woman to her own devices."

Sakon laughed. "I can imagine it now! Taiyou by chance meeting a member of the local Yakuza on the street and being captured! She'd than challenge the head boss to a match of Go while sipping that flowering tea of hers. Than she'd-"

"-Make a wager for her freedom, but end up getting killed instead." Mitsunari finished Sakon's thought. His smile deflated to a melancholic one. "That's true, but that's be such a shame if that were to actually happen. That girl was such a good sport."

_When did you guys get all buddy-buddy? _

"If you're so sad, than fetch her yourself."

"My Lord wants me back to headquarters by tomorrow morning. No can do." Sakon shrugged. "I guess I'll never be able to play go with her ever again."

_That's right, I'll never play Go with her again... _And he was just becoming fond of this little past time. He mentally shrugged. _I'll find another opponent. _

"I wonder how the reaction of Lord Hideyoshi and Lady Nene would be? I heard that they were fond of her as well."

That did it. Normally they would acknowledge soldiers as a whole as opposed to a single one, but they knew her well enough to know her name and give her permission to address everyone casually. If they found out that he had left her to the Yakuza, how would their reaction be like? At the very least, Lady Nene would throw a fit and Mitsunari was not fond of unnecessary tantrums. _Damnit. When I get my hands on her…_

Sakon smiled as a look of frustration crept onto the fox's face.

Without even saying good-bye to Sakon, Mitsunari strode in the direction of the stables.

The older man let out a warm chuckle as he watched the single crimson leaf fall.

* * *

References:

- Normally, women in this age weren't high-ranked in the military, especially if you didn't have noble blood

- Taiyou is the Sun

- Yakuza : Japanese equivalent to the Italian Mafia

Act 2 to follow soon.


	4. Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask: Act 2

**Here's part 2 **

**Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu/Taiyou does.**

**

* * *

**

**Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask **(Act: 2)

He was only able to use one hand to ride his horse (due to his injury), but he was used to it. But the thing he was most unused to was the lack of weight on his body. Lately he had only ridden horses with his armour, heavy battle clothes and Open Valour in hand. Now, he just sported his arm in a sling, and clothed in a white hakama* and a navy blue kimono. Even his signature headpiece was gone and his hair in a high ponytail. He had a wakizashi and a kodachi** tucked into his belt instead of his trusty fan.

Before he had left, he at least knew to tell Lord Hideyoshi about it. After all, he IS his vassal right? It was at the suggestion of Lord Hideyoshi and Lady Nene that he look like a civilian after all. It wouldn't do well to have a ranked officer dressed in battle gear storming into Yakuza territory. Hideyoshi would formally announce his momentary absence as being for 'rehabilitation' purposes. The fact that his arm was in a sling would support that explanation. Hideyoshi assured him that in his absence, Masanori and Kiyomasa would work extra hard to cover for him. Mitsunari inwardly smirked.

Mitsunari almost felt that he had betrayed his prized weapon though when he put it into its case before he left.

Why was he (and even Lord Hideyoshi!) putting in so much effort just to retrieve one reserve officer? He couldn't really understand.

But the hope of this duty moving along faster did help in motivating him to increase the speed of his horse.

* * *

When he arrived in the town, somehow he wasn't very surprised at the look of it. Despite the fact that it was supposed to be celebrating a festival, it looked downright gloomy. Many of the stalls and shops looked either abandoned or wrecked and he didn't sense any of the energy that should have been apparent in the civilian's expressions, especially in a town of a fairly large size that was supposed to be in a festive mood. He didn't see any children playing around in the streets and many of the people there had their eyes downcast, save for the obvious members of the local Yakuza holding their heads up high and flashing their weapons at anyone who dared to look at them.

Mitsunari dismounted his horse and taking its harness, and led it through the town looking for any signs of the woman. As he passed by, a few of the citizens looked curiously at him. He was an unfamiliar face whose eyes weren't downcast and was healthy looking (minus the arm) as opposed to them.

Not to mention, he still owned his horse. A fine looking one at that.

Nene warned him to try and blend in, but his pride wouldn't let his head bow down for mere street thugs. He decided to stop at a tea shop that looked like she may have stopped at. Why did he think she may have stopped there? The store owned those weird flowering teas (albeit, at ridiculously high prices) and even had a table with a built-in Go board for the leisure of travellers.

He strapped his horse to a post meant for horses and went inside. As he walked to the store manager, he passed by a few members of the Yakuza making fools out of their drunken selves. _What kind of idiot gets drunk in the afternoon? _

He was about to speak to the frail looking manager when he stopped himself. He was supposed to give a description of her right? She looked like a generic Japanese woman. Then, it hit him.

"Have you seen a young woman who seemed like she wasn't from here and…" He glanced at the Go board. "Was a Go maniac?"

"Eheh..? N-N-No sir…" He stuttered and looked down again. When the store manager's eyes looked down, he noticed Mitsunari's left arm in a sling. The manager's eyes widened. "C-C-C-Could it be that you're..?"

Mitsunari cocked an eyebrow. "What is it?" He inquired the twitching old man. He was slightly concerned that his cover may have already been blown.

An obvious stranger in town with an injured arm, just a day after a military skirmish nearby ended? Anyone could come to the conclusion that he would have been in that battle.

And was a vassal of a lord that the local Yakuza would not have liked.

But the old man's eyes twinkled with hope. That as an unexpected reaction.

"Could it be that you're Kamen Rider Kitsune***?"

Mitsunari didn't know how to react to the stupidity of the question. "What are you-"

"OI! DiD sHuMoNe shaY Kaaman RidAh KiTSHUne?" (Translation: Hey, did anyone by any chance mention the name of the famed, masked rider Kitsune? I would very much like to know if you would please.) One of the drunken yakuza member's interrupted from their table.

"iF I FiND ThAT BASSSHTurD, I'Ll KeeL 'IM DED!" (Translation: If ever I find that person, after so much hard work looking for him, I will dispatch him immediately, just so that his soul would be so disoriented that it wouldn't reach heaven!)

Mitsunari turned to face them. "Sorry, I don't speak moron." The arrogance for which he was famous for shone through his tone. He gripped his kodachi as the old man promptly ran out the back door along with the rest of the customers, knowing that a scuffle might break out.

"WHuT Yu Say PWEttY BoY? IMmAA KEEL Yu Too!" (Translation: I apologise, but it seems as though I had not heard you correctly, you fairly attractive man. Now, I shall dispatch of you too because of your insolence. Please do not hold it against me.)

As the drunken men charged toward Mitsunari, he felt he was ready to meet them. He specialized in using his fan for this kind of situation, but he knows enough about swordplay to be at least more effective than the morons charging towards him.

When Kodachi met Katana, that's when he saw it.

From seemingly nowhere, a figure clad in red and white snuck between the two and threw a smoke bomb to the ground. It exploded with a loud POOF! The sudden interruption sent the men into disorientation and the drunken men coughed and swore violently, blindly slashing in the cloud of smoke. Mitsunari squinted and held his sleeve to his mouth while dodging and parrying the blind slashes.

Suddenly, his right wrist was grabbed and forced Mitsunari to run forward. From what he could see through the smoke, it was the red and white figure. It was leading him out the back door and to the back alleyways. When Mitsunari regained his senses, he forcibly pulled his wrist out of their hand and held his Kodachi in a stance.

"Who are you?" He demanded of the stranger. Now that he noticed it, the person was fairly short and was wearing a festival kitsune mask under a white hood. He saw that their left arm was in a sling as well. _So that's why I was mistaken.. This must be Kamen Rider Kitsune… How ridiculous. _He prevented himself from outright laughing.

Kitsune seemed to stare at him for a few seconds before letting out a small: "Oh."

_Oh..? _

Kitsune tilted its head back and let out a shrill whistle, and soon he heard galloping sounds. A chestnut brown stallion soon came to a slow trot beside Kitsune. Seeing the horse, Mitsunari understood. He sheathed his kodachi and immediately mounted the horse. It gave a neigh of recognition and Kitsune quickly mounted the horse in front of him.

As they rode to wherever Kitsune was leading them, Mitsunari laughed mockingly.

"I can hardly believe that anyone would be dumb enough to involve themselves into this kind of tribulation. Be ready for punishment when this is all over."

From under the mask, he could hear her muffled response: "Yes Lord… Mitsunari."

* * *

References:

* Hakama: A traditional Japanese garb, most often worn by men.

** Wakizashi & Kodachi: A wakizashi is a short Katana usually worn with a full length Katana and is usually a length that would compliment said katana. Kodachi is a short sword that was most commonly used among merchants; it was too short to be a full length katana, but too long to be considered a dagger.

*** Kamen Rider Kitsune: Literally, Masked Rider, Fox. This is a reference to the Kamen Rider series in modern Japan. In western culture, it can be compared to the Power Ranger series.

Part 3 to follow soon


	5. Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask: Act 3

Here's part 3

Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu/Taiyou does.

* * *

**Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask **(Act: 3)

"What possessed you to do this exactly?" He inquired.

"Hmm?" She didn't look up at him as she placed down a stone. Clonk!

Placing a stone down himself, he asked more firmly. "Why are you going around as 'Kamen Rider Kitsune' ?" His irritation for her returned. After they had arrived in an area considered the "Entertainment District" of the town, they had gone into a brothel where the women there welcomed them with open arms (and uncomfortable staring in Mitsunari's direction) and let them into an unoccupied room. He wondered why they hadn't left for the camp yet.

He remembered that during the ride, he had given her strict orders to head for the camp, which she hadn't listened to.

She'll be punished later.

"Lord…. Mitsunari, as you have probably seen, this town has been oppressed by the Yakuza in this area…" Clonk!

"Which is of no concern to us." Clonk!

"OOhhh YESSS~!" He nearly scoffed and knocked over the stone containers at the feminine voice from next door. _Well, it IS a brothel. _

Clonk! It was amazing how she seemed unaffected. "Well, the citizenry is being abused here sir-" Another loud moan. "Even in this brothel, many of the women here were either kidnapped by the yakuza or sold to them due to 'taxes'. Everyday, there's a crowd of people behind this brothel begging for their wives and daughters back, but can't do anything because of the Yakuza."

"Why are we here anyway?" Another loud moan. _Damn these thin walls_.

"I was almost kidnapped and sold here by the Yakuza when I came to this town this morning. They didn't realize that I was under the rule of Lord…Hideyoshi so I was saved by the former clan of Yakuza that had this area under its protection. This new clan is ruthless and brutal. The old clan tries to save as many citizens as they can on a daily basis, but their numbers are dwindling. I was allowed to stay here by the brothel's head who was old friends with the old clan leader. She only runs this business due to threats from the new clan. They even prevented the harvest festival from occurring this year..." Clonk! Moaaannnn…

_Gang wars. Just great. _Clonk!

"The old clan used to be fair in their protection money collection, and they would never take human compensation. They also allowed festivals and never abused the people as far as this new clan does. I owe my life to them and want to help them in anyway I can." Clonk.

Mitsunari inwardly scoffed. Clonk! "Even if you WERE kidnapped, it should be no problem, so why are you still here?"

He heard from her squad and deduced that she should have been able to at least be able to take care of some street mongrels herself. Clonk!

"I'm sure I would have, but they had a strange creature on their side…"

"Strange creature?"

"Yes… He had purple skin and red hair that looked like snakes and he wielded a clawed gauntlet. He seemed very strong and I wouldn't have been able to successfully escape without revealing my affiliations, IF I were able to escape without the old clan's help that is…" Clonk.

"…." _Kotaro Fuma_. _What the hell is a dog of the Hojo clan doing here? It seems that this 'outing' has become even more serious… _He mentally wished that he had Open Valour right about now.

"Milord…?"

Abruptly standing and regaining his authoritative stance, he took her un-slinged arm and pulled her to a standing position as well. He ripped off her mask and her white overcoat (she had a kimono and haori underneath) as well. Her surprised face was apparent. "Listen to me. Ride my horse back to the Toyotomi forces now. Inform Lord Hideyoshi of everything that has happened here, especially about that creature you met. You are lighter and my horse is faster than yours. You should be there and back in an hour or so." He than began to drag her out of the brothel despite her polite protests.

He gave a shrill whistle and as sure as rain, his white horse came, despite being strapped to a post before. "While you are there, grab Open Valour and make sure Lord Hideyoshi doesn't send back-up unless it is Lady Nene." (He reluctantly mentioned her, but having a ninja on both sides would even out the odds, no? Having a large amount of back-up would escalate the situation even more.) He hoisted her up on his horse.

"Do not argue with me." He said sternly before slapping his horse. The beast jostled in alarm and began running in the direction where Taiyou directed it. She threw a pout at him as she rode away, clearly reluctant to leave. If he hadn't forcibly made her go, she probably would have made him engage in another wager over their Go match, which would have wasted precious time.

When she was out of eyesight, he mentally smacked himself. He hadn't even gotten the complete story from her before she left. He quickly re-entered the brothel looking for the head mistress. She could probably fill in the blanks.

As he went deeper into the brothel, he felt his face burn. The walls were thin and you could hear almost everything that was happening in each room. _How barbaric… _He soon reached the head mistress' room and secretly hoped he wasn't about to intrude on something weird.

Which is exactly what happened. But not weird in the way that you were probably thinking. When he entered the room, he was surprised to see the man famously known as Magoichi Saika speaking with a beautiful, mature woman he could only assume was the head mistress. Magoichi was certainly surprised to say the least.

"Hey, you're that Fox guy who works under Hideyoshi… right?" He had heard that the man was on relatively good terms with his commander.

"Ishida Mitsunari, remember it." He replied curtly. "I need to speak with the Head mistress."

"Hey, hey! Wait your turn~ We've got some 'important' business to take care of, right babe?"

The head mistress shrugged off Magoichi's approaching arm. "It's fine Magoichi. He's with Tai." _Since when am I 'with' that asinine woman? _

"With Tai, eh?" _He must have known her for only a few hours and they're already on nickname basis? _"Well than, Lord Ishida, what brings you to the lady's chamber?"There was a bit of a mocking tone in his voice. Mitsunari ignored it for the time being.

"I need to know a few more details about the current situation. Why is a vassal of mine dressed so ridiculously, for one thing?"

The head Mistress and Magoichi laughed. "That was her own idea," the lady began. "She wanted the 'shock and awe' effect with the guarantee that her identity as a Toyotomi soldier would be hidden. I think it was quite effective."

"It's hard to believe how much she helped out in a matter of a few hours," Magoichi laughed. "While under that disguise, it was like there was no fear, despite her left arm's injury. She helped the old clan to save many more oppressed citizens today alone. She's kinda famous now." _She's just being an idiot, more like it. _

"As for me, I heard this lady here was in trouble and since we were old friends, I thought I could help out." He tried reaching with his arm again." But with a discounted price for friends of course." She once again batted his hand away. _I never asked_.

"I've been here for a while, trying to help solve the problem, but with that ninja-freak roaming around, it's difficult. I could never get a clear shot at him and he's always mumbling about CHAOS CHAOS CHAOS.." He imitated Kotaro's throaty voice and made the lady chuckle darkly. It was than that Mitsunari noticed the rifle leaning against a wall nearby.

With this, a plan was stirring in the fox's head.

He smirked. _Looks like Kamen Rider Kitsune will have its day._

_We'll be finished by tonight. _"How fast can you make garments out of fur?"

* * *

Part 4 to follow~


	6. Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask: Act 4

Here's part 4

Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu/Taiyou does.

* * *

**Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask **(Act:4)

Taiyou was surprised to see that when she had returned to her room at the brothel, a man with a familiar looking Kitsune mask was standing there. He was wearing elaborately designed clothing (that wouldn't look out of place on a kabuki* actor) with autumn leaf patterns. It took a moment for her to recognize the man as her commander.

"Get changed into these clothes and meet at the headmistress' room as fast as possible." He said as he took his signature fan from her pack. "I suppose Lady Nene was not able to come." He opened it to check that it hadn't been damaged. It was in tip-top shape as always. He was slightly concerned for his out-of-order arm, but he'd have to make due.

"Sir, she was busy with the medics. Apparently someone at the camp was giving bi-"

"It matters not to me. Hurry up and get changed." He said as he left the room. Her eyes soon travelled to the clothes he was referring to, gingerly folded in the corner of the room.

Walking closer to the pile, she had to stifle her laughter at the most significant (and strange) piece that was rolled up and placed on top of the pile.

* * *

"So than, that's the plan?" Magoichi said scratching his head. "I would've thought that someone who looked as uptight as you would've thought up something a little less…. Flashy."

"The selected ploys of my *idiotic* vassal have forced this situation to become flashy."

"But still, would it be alright if we did this? I mean, masquerading as deities-"

"I would think that the deity wouldn't mind, especially if it was done so that the festival in their honour would proceed. The festival honouring her in thanks for the good harvest they should have had hadn't happened in a couple of years now thanks to those yakuza." The head mistress sighed. "I want to drink some festival sake**…" She muttered almost dreamily.

"Still.." Magoichi tried in vain to not let his laughter show. "Doesn't anyone else find it funny that the infamously arrogant "Fox*** of Mt. Sawa" is dressed up as a kitsune?" To say that Mitsunari's patience was wearing oh-so-thin would be an understatement. He decided to put this statement out of his mind. (Though it was increasingly difficult, now that the headmistress joined in on the laughter.)

_What's taking that damned woman so long? _

Her voice spoke from the door behind him. "I apologise Lord… Mitsunari. I didn't know how to put this on correctly." _Speak of the devil. _

He turned to her and raised an eyebrow. If this were one of those girl's comics, there would be an over-exaggerated reaction at the drastic change in her clothing, but this is definitely not the case.

She just stood there, wearing a red and white decorated kimono (that would not look odd on a geisha) with some monstrosity on her head. There was a pelt of shaggy white fur that started at her head and dragged on the floor that gradated into red. "I have to admit milord, this piece is making me very hot." Taiyou said, scratching it. It looked itchy too.

"This will help to reinforce that 'image' you made of yourself." He snickered. There was a flurry of movement at the headmistress briskly walked over to her and applied some light make-up. Magoichi following behind her.

"Miss, what is this for..?"

"We can't have you dressed as the Lady Kuzunoha*^ now and not be absolutely radiant, now can we? You'll be soo cute Tai.." There was a small cloud of powder as her face became paler and she gave a slight cough. "Why can't you do it headmistress? Your beauty is far greater than mine in this sense."

"I would love to, but I am not a soldier. I'd just get myself killed in this situation." She sighed sadly.

Magoichi observed with a sly smile on his face. "Hehe.. You're becoming too beautiful Tai… maybe when this is all over, we can try a new 'position' when we come back.." He said with a husky tone.

"Maybe." She replied nonchalantly.

…

_What? _

Mitsunari nearly scoffed and was slightly thankful for the mask that covered it.

_Well, it IS a brothel. _As if responding to his thought, he heard a loud moan from above: "OHHH~ HIT ME THERE AND CALL ME A BAD BOOYYYYY~" This time, he really did scoff aloud and faked a cough to hide it.

"Magoichi, did you succeed in spreading the rumours?" He inquired, further pushing odd thoughts to the back of his mind.

"Yeap." Magoichi quickly returned to his normal tone of voice. "Those suckers will suck up anything the ladies of the brothel have to say in terms of rumours. If nothing else." This earned a smack from the headmistress. "If the whole town isn't already whispering by now, I'd give you my prized rifle."

"Than you'd best hope that you're right, otherwise I'd use that rifle for firewood, seeing as I have no room in storage for such a thing."

"Hahaha. You're a really funny lord." He replied, his eye slightly twitching.

"Milord, may I ask what this plan is?" Taiyou asked as she put on a kitsune half-mask.

Mitsunari looked out the window, at the setting sun. "You must follow every single order I give you this time. No wagers over silly games as it will waste what time we have."

"Yes, my Lord…. Mitsunari." She said as she put on a half-faced kitsune mask.

* * *

References:

*Kabuki - Japanese theatre I believe

**Sake - Rice wine

***Fox & Kitsune - When I say 'fox' in terms of this story, I'm referring to the usual animal. When I say 'kitsune' I'm referring to the mythological creature.

*^ Kuzunoha - In Japanese folklore, a kitsune disguised as a beautiful woman who eventually gave birth to a famous court magician known as Abe no Seimei. Although, the timing of the era may be inaccurate to the samurai warrior's universe and her role in Japanese mythology is different, let's just go with it for now, yes? :D

Part 5 to follow


	7. Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask: Act 5

**Here's part 5 (Final [and longest] part of the arc)**

**Samurai warriors is a game I do own, but only my copy of the game. The game itself does NOT belong to , Enmu/Retsu/Taiyou does.**

**Bold** for a flashback.

* * *

**Some Sunshine, Swords and a Mask **(Act:5)

The first things that alerted them that something they didn't like happening in their dear territory were the sounds of bells.

That jingle that was most heard at shrines.

But their men had already ran-sacked all those bells and anything valuable at the nearby shrine so, why did they continue to hear them?

The memory of a rumour they heard that evening from ladies at the brothel resurfaced.

"**They say that that Kamen Rider Kitsune, who was going around today saving the townspeople was actually Lady Kuzunoha, enraged that the thugs in town were desecrating her festival.."**

"**Yeah, that's right, we haven't celebrated the thanksgiving harvest festival in a while, no?" **

"**Yeah, it's all their fault."**

"**I heard from one of the monks who used to work at the shrine that this was just the beginning, Lady Kuzunoha would have her revenge. They say you know when she's coming from the sounds of bells from the shrine."**

"**But didn't the yakuza already take all the bells..?**

"**Oh, now that I think about it, she would be rather angry, especially at that…" They giggled darkly. **

Now, their boss (and now that they though about it, them too) wasn't that religious, which was the reason why they raided the shrine without remorse, but that didn't stop the two guards in front of their headquarters from becoming paranoid. They looked to the direction of the faint sound of the bells and saw nothing but darkness in the lonely street in front of their headquarters.

For a little while at least.

They rubbed their eyes hoping that they were being deceived. Maybe that damned ninja that the boss hired was playing tricks on them again? (Last time he did, they found all of their armour mysteriously sticking to the ceiling with no sign of any adhesive. When they inquired to him about it, he slashed down some of their comrades spouting nonsense about 'CHAOSCHAOSCHAOS') But the seemingly bright wave of energy that suddenly lit the road's torches was not an illusion. (Or was it?) The torches lit the street almost as if the sun were still up.

It illuminated the elaborately decorated festival float in procession down the street. It had around two dozen men all wearing kitsune masks carrying it and at the top of the float….

"AAAAAHHHHHHHH MILOOORRRDDDDDD!" The guards screamed as they panicked. "IT'S LADY KUZUNOHA! SHE'S HERE TO EXAC-" Boom! Boom!

Both men were down at the gunshots. From a top the float, Magoichi blew off some of the residual smoke from his rifle. "Looks like the plan is working." He grinned from under his mask.

"Milord... Mitsunari, how did you produce that wave of mysterious energy?" Taiyou asked using minimal mouth movement. Her role was to try to remain as poised as possible.

"Wellll… " Magoichi was about to break the fourth wall*, when Mitsunari stopped him. "It's nothing an identity confused woman like you would need to know."

"Identity confused?"

"Don't tell me that you think I wouldn't have noticed it, that you-"

"Looks like they're here." Magoichi said, cocking his rifle. The float came to a stop just outside the front gate and the masked men eased it to the ground. They stood still by the float as if they were stone sentinels. Mitsunari looked down from the top of the float at a well-dressed (and fed) man with an oily face surrounded by slightly horrified looking men. He assumed that this was their boss.

Kotaro's maniacal looking mug beside him confirmed this. Mitsunari glared at this. Said ninja looked twitchy. At least, more so than normal.

"We are here to speak with your boss in regards to the thanksgiving harvest festival for this year." Mitsunari spoke. He didn't want to waste as much of his breath as possible on these low-lives.

The yakuza boss gave the float an unamused look-over, but his gaze lingered on Taiyou. "So you're Kamen Rider Kitsune eh? This whole time, today's infamous ruffian turned out to be a woman. AND an injured woman at that." Taiyou's slinged arm got itchy. Too bad she couldn't scratch it.

He gave a loud, obnoxious laugh. "You've got to be kidding me. After we're done with you clowns, I'll make sure to administer your 'punishment' for your insolence myself." He made a perverted grin on his face that reminded of the last pig that Mitsunari had seen. He gave a grin at the mental image, seeing that the reason why he saw it was because it was headed to the kitchen.

Taiyou herself seemed unaffected.

"How DARE you speak to the Lady like that?" Magoichi played his part exceedingly well. "After you common street thugs have disrupted her festival for years now? YOU INSOLENT WRETCH. And here we are, gracing you idiots with our presence, in hopes that you would be willing to negotiate, and than you say such vulgar things?"

"I have no need for any sort of negotiations." Suddenly, the rest of the members of the Yakuza surrounded them, all with swords in hand. "Take care of this Kotaro. But don't injure the woman too badly. I want to be able to have some fun with her later." He grinned perversely as he stood back.

Kotaro tightened his gauntlet and hissed menacingly. "No guarantees." Kotaro than sprang up, claw on his hand ready to strike in mid-air. _He won't be able to dodge in mid-jump. _

Magoichi smirked and fired a few shots at Kotaro, but widened his eyes. Kotaro seemed as though he didn't intend to dodge the bullets and took one to the shoulder and to the leg. "HAHAHAHA!" He laughed as he brought his gauntlet down in Taiyou's direction. The force appearing as though it would hit all three occupants at the top of the float, forced them to jump off all at once. (Taiyou: How is it that he can summon a strange power as well? Mitsunari: JUST FOCUS) The flurry of seemingly instantaneous movements caused the Yakuza to let out battle cries and engage anyone who was near them (that wasn't an ally), be it Magoichi, Mitsunari, Taiyou or one of the float carriers.

Speaking of the float carriers.

Said float carriers ripped off their masks to reveal that they were in fact warriors from the old clan. They gave no battle cry as the plan was set into motion. Instead, they said thing like: "Hey you bastards, can't catch mee~" Why is that there seemed to be a flowery background as the warriors pranced away..? They even broke their formation and spilt up too.

Instead of battle cries, they mocked the other Yakuza and ran through the streets. There seemed to be classic chase scenes happening all over the city. One member of the old clan would be chased by around three from the new clan. It would be quite entertaining to watch. But one would ask, what the point in this was? Wasn't Mitsunari supposed to have a plan? Speaking of Mitsunari…

After he had evaded Kotaro's attack, he landed quite softly on the ground keeping himself aware of the enemy ninja's ploys. The dust created from the attack had yet to settle so his visibility had been hindered. His concentration slightly broke when he heard gunshots being fired in seemingly random directions. _Looks like he's going after Magoichi first. _He used his fan to clear away the dust flying around and spotted him a few meters away. He seemed to be doing a dance, when Kotaro would appear in one direction, Magoichi would shoot, in another, he'd slash with his bayonet and from behind, either one depending on the distance. He seemed to be barely keeping time with the ninja's random appearances.

Mitsunari quickly dispatched a member of the Yakuza who tried to sneak up from behind before rushing to Magoichi's aid. He slashed at Kotaro who was about to slash Magoichi's shoulder. Kotaro dodged and the dance continued, except with the three of them. Parrying, dodging, blocking, attacking. It became an intricate dance.

"Oh? Is the proud fox actually trying to help me?" Magoichi said with a bit of a laugh in his voice.

"Hmph. I plan on taking the glory while you do the work."

"Haha. You bastard!" Magoichi made contact with the ninja with his bayonet. There was a hiss as Kotaro took a slash to the leg. His movements became slower, so the dance became one-sided. It was Kotaro on defence. He ended up having to block both the bayonet and the fan at the same time, gripping them with his metal gauntlets. "Why is a dog of the Hojo clan here?" Mitsunari inquired.

Kotaro hissed again and with a smirk on his face, replied: "Chaos is never satiated."

_Crazy Bastard. _There was a sudden movement and suddenly Magoichi was shoved to the side, and Mitsunari knocked to the ground. The sharp pain Mitsunari felt immobilized his left arm (not that he was using it). Kotaro had sunk a few of his clawed fingers into his shoulder and through the stitches that had been attempting to heal already. A red stain began interacting with the red leaves of his kimono. He had him effectively pinned with his forearm pressing down on his neck. He could smell his foul breath through the mask's nostrils as Kotaro smirked down at him. Mentally, Mitsunari gagged.

"The way you two fight is unlike any of the of the ants here…" He hissed. "I'm guessing you were in the battle with the Akechi that happened just yester-" Mitsunari quickly got up as Kotaro had to dodge an arrow and a bullet that came his way. His left side bleeding profusely, he looked to Magoichi who literally held the smoking gun and was poised for another shot. _The arrow..? _He saw Taiyou carrying a bow disappear over a wall being chased by a few yakuza. He laughed a little to himself and poised himself in an attack stance. He concentrated and felt energy course through himself **. Looking to Magoichi, he could tell that he felt the same way. _This is going to be the final attack…_

* * *

Each of the members of the old clan found themselves in narrow alleyways, flanked by low walls, as Taiyou observed, running on the tops of said walls. Her shoulder's stitches had come undone when she shot the arrow, so her kimono was stained with red. It wasn't that bad of an injury, so she chose to ignore it. A few of the members of the new clan were trying to run after her on the tops as well, but many fumbled. Eventually, she stopped running when she found was in earshot of most of the old clan members. Taking her naginata***, she knocked off and dispatched the couple of street thugs who remained with her mid-ranged weapon.

Than, with all of the breath in her lungs, she screamed: "NOWW!"

The clan members who were being chased, suddenly spun around engaged their pursuers. Each of them had strategically run into places and alleys that were tight so that no more than one or two people could pass through at a time. This eliminated the problem of the difference in their numbers. The warriors were fairly strong each and were able to meet them without this disadvantage. The scream had also alerted the townspeople, who from the safety of their homes, subtly helped the old clan members. They had enough of the new gang, so rocks were thrown, kitchen knives, furniture, hairpins, pottery and even pots and pans were thrown at the yakuza.

Taiyou gave a wide smile as she heard explosions and screams from the direction of the firework's shop. The triumphant howls of the townspeople told her that the plan was working.

"Lady Kuzunoha!" She nearly didn't respond when she heard the name being called. She looked down on the street to see a group of old clan members watching her with reverence. They were unaware of her true identity. She tried not to blush in embarrassment. "What would you like us to do now?"

"Let's go back to their headquarters." She tried to sound as 'deity-like' as possible. "My attendants would require assistance." Lord Ishida would have her head if he found out that she referred to him as such! She thought. But that was the role they were supposed to play. Ignoring the pain in her left side, she ran to check on her commander.

* * *

"Hmph. My purpose was fulfilled. This town was filled with chaos to the brim…"Kotaro said, huffing heavily. Multiple areas of his body were bleeding from either gunshots or wounds from Mitsunari's fans. _This won't be enough to kill him…damn ninja. _Mitsunari could feel the sudden energy burst dissipate. During the rush, he and Magoichi were able to inflict heavy damage to him in the short time they had. _Time to finish him off. _

Kotaro suddenly laughed. "I will live to bring chaos another day!" He suddenly threw a smoke bomb to the ground. Mitsunari cleared it away to show that Kotaro had vanished.

"Heh. He ran away!" Magoichi said, holding his rifle on his shoulders. He had a big grin on his face.

"Now, it's time to get rid of the main problem." Mitsunari said, striding into the building of the main headquarters, where he assumed their boss would be.

Magoichi walked up beside him. "H-Hey! Wait up!"

"Milord!" Taiyou ran up behind him and kept with his hurried pace through the building. It seemed relatively emptied out.

"Report."

"The plan worked sir. As predicted, the townspeople had assisted. No major casualties were reported."

Mitsunari smirked. "All that's left is the king cockroach." He opened a double sliding door at the end of the hallway where he could see faintly glowing light shining through the paper. He saw the boss drinking, surrounded by scantily clad women and bodyguards. When he saw them, his face turned to that of utter surprise.

He wasn't expecting the enemies to come straight to him. In fact, he was expecting a messenger that would have informed him of the quick dispatch of the weird masked group (and maybe the woman nicely wrapped up for his usage).

Instead, he found said woman with her two attendants, appearing like the demons in stories he knew as a child. They were pretty frightening after all, with their blood-soaked robes and their disguises. It didn't help that it was night time and the flickering candles made their demonic shadows dance around in the room. The women squealed in fright and ran out of the room, right past the trio. His bodyguards, also scared out of their minds, held their weapons with shaking hands.

"This town has had it with the oppression that was caused by you." Taiyou said, walking to him in full view. With the way she walked, Mitsunari was surprised that she had that much grace in her. Pointing her naginata at the boss, she continued, "now, it is time that you receive your punishment." Right on time, members of the old clan appeared at the door with some rope in hand. They were going to take him in as if they were the police. Mitsunari mentally laughed at the irony.

Completely cornered, scared and outnumbered, the hired bodyguards held expressions that almost screamed that they were giving up. The boss wiped sweat from his brow with a scowl. "WHAT DID I HIRE YOU SCUMS FOR? GO GET THEM!" The guards reluctantly charged forwards, only to be shot or slashed away by the trio and the old clan.

They noticed that amidst the distraction, the leader had fled. _Che. _

They quickly gave chase and searched the premises only to find his limp body in the pond in the yard. His blood dying the water a dark red. Standing over him with bloodstained gauntlets was Kotaro. "HEheheEHehe. No one can ever control the winds of chaos." He said before disappearing in mid-air.

"Sir, is it just me, or was that one of the most corny exits ever?" Mitsunari felt it unnecessary to answer her question. Loud cheers from the old clan erupted as the realization that the new clan had been destroyed. "BANZAI~BANZAIIIII~!"

"We did it, milord. (even if it was Kotaro who delivered the final blow)" Taiyou said with a small smile on her face.

"Hmph. I do not take pride in such a meagre endeavour. Now that this matter is settled, it is time to administer your punishment for your insubordination."

"Punishment, milord? May we discuss it over a game of Go?"

"Don't even-"

"My Lady Kuzunoha!" A voice bellowed. The cheering stopped and the clan members parted way for an old man with a merry look on his face. _I'm assuming that this is the old clan's boss… _"I thank you for your kind intervention! Now we can proceed with your festival!"

(In the background, some old clan members appeared to be cleaning up after the night's battle, taking away the bodies and such. I just thought they should be mentioned, because clean-up duty is always overlooked)

"N-No Sir… It was just for the sake of this operation, I'm not-"

"I knew already." The old man smiled warmly. "Thank you young lady. We'll forever be in you debt." This made her cheeks warm up and she slipped off her mask.

He turned to Mitsunari, still with that warm smile. "I know that we're in major debt toyou as well, Lord Ishida." _Heh. He knew. _Mitsunari and Magoichi slipped off their masks as well. "This town will forever be indebted to the Toyotomi. Please inform your lord of our goodwill."

"I will." Mitsunari said, with the tone of authority in his voice.

"I will have someone tend to your injuries. If you have some time, would you stay for the festival? It is due to your efforts that it can finally come this year aftera-"

"HEY OLD MAN! What about my thanks?" Magoichi interrupted.

"Don't worry. I haven't forgotten you. Now all of your tabs have been paid. I should think that has been more than enough."

"You sly old man." Magoichi sheepishly scratched his head. Taiyou raised her sleeve to stifle her giggle.

"Now than, would you two grace us with your presence at this festival? It would be held tomorrow night due to the clean-up and set-up, but I'm sure it would be grand."

"Milord?" Taiyou glanced at him. The reason why she was there in the first place was for the festival.

"We have to regroup with the Toyotomi forces, so after we're patched up, we're leaving."

"…Yes, Milord."

"That's a shame." The old clan leader said.

* * *

The whole thing was dealt with in a single night, so it was now morning.

He had slept well for a couple of hours.

The first thing he was grateful for, was the fact that immediately after the dissolution of the new clan, the brothel was converted to a teahouse. As it was originally. (A brothel does exist, still in the town, but it doesn't force its women).

Now he can rest without mysterious moaning everywhere. His shoulder still ached with the new stitching in, so he simply sat in the middle of the room, looking down at the unfinished Go game from before. Even though he was patched, he was supposed to wait a couple of hours before any horse-back riding, or other large movement. He would have to rest in the meantime.

_So, if she places here, than I would place-_

"Remember Tai. This is a new position, so I'm sorry if I'm rough."

"Do not worry, I'm sure I can handle it."

"Even with your injury?"

"You'd be surprised~"

"Than let's get started!" THUMP!

"Looks like you did it wrong, let's try it again." _WHAT. THE. HELL. _Mitsunari mentally smacked himself. The brothel was converted, and yet they planned on doing it here, and this loudly? _Damn these thin walls. _

He stood up and strode to the room next door, slamming open the sliding door without a care that he might stumble onto something indecent. His eye twitched at the scene.

On the floor, a heavy Go board with the black and white stones scattered around it was lying on its side, most likely fallen over. Magoichi was standing up, most likely being the one that knocked it over. Taiyou was kneeled on the ground, and was non-chalantly picking up the stones.

"Milord…. Mitsunari, you're here just in time. Would you please assist me in helping Magoichi in learning a new Go strategy?" Mitsunari mentally face-palmed.

"Have you forgotten that I have to administer your punishment?" Mitsunari said through clenched teeth.

Taiyou froze. "Heheh. Tough luck Tai." Magoichi took this opportunity to escape through the sliding door behind the seemingly angry commander.

"Milord, I'm about to reset a Go board right now, may I request that-"

"No. I will directly give you punishment right now with no debates." Turning his back on her and facing the hallways, he spoke to her still, with the voice of authority. "First, since I need time to recover, you may go to the festival."

"Ah." She was confused.

"It is a reward also, for getting me the opportunity to gain the loyalty of this town for Lord Hideyoshi. This will be beneficial to the Toyotomi later on. However, you did disobey a direct order, so you may attend the festival," He had an evil glint in his eyes that Taiyou couldn't see. "On the condition that you must wear that fur headdress for the festival's duration."

"Ah…Th-thank you Lord..Mitsunari…" Her tone had reluctant happiness in it. He knew she had really wanted to attend the festival, but the headdress was stifling hot (especially now in the summer, during the daytime), and very itchy. He walked back into his room slightly dissatisfied with the punishment he gave. Too lenient.

_I'll give her more upon our return._

_

* * *

_References:

* - One of mistunari's special attacks to to send out an energy wave from his fan  
** - Musou mode  
*** - a japanese glaive. Traditionally, it was women that mostly carried this.

Also, I'll take requests for certain pairings. The rest of the story in my head allows for such at this point. Perferably not homosexual (I don't think I'm well-versed in that area). Taiyou can even be in a pairing if you wish.


End file.
